


The Warehouse

by AdventuresintheRain



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: Audrey's dealing with the past, Sparring, Swordfighting, and she really wants to hit something, and who can relate better than the VKs, like really i self indulged, so much magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 11:14:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20173312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AdventuresintheRain/pseuds/AdventuresintheRain
Summary: Audrey’s having a hard time finding her place after her evil magic spree in Auradon, so the VKs show her how to cope.





	The Warehouse

**Author's Note:**

> So I love what happened with Audrey's character and all I want is for her to bond with the VKs so here's that plus a self indulgent setting in which I describe my perfect hideout for kids with mischief in their blood.

Mal was mistaken when she thought she could be queen. Her quick temper and sharp attitude were definitely not going to serve her well on the throne.

And Ben, well, he couldn’t quite get it. As much as she cared about him, there was a piece of the puzzle that didn’t quite fit right. She ended the engagement, and requested a council position instead, one that gave her less responsibility and didn’t require her to be something she wasn’t.

In that position, her first suggestion was that Evie take the throne as queen. The princess was perfect for it, and perhaps there was a way to have a king and queen that weren’t married to each other rule Auradon.

Ben said he’d think about it. In the meantime, Mal focused on the new citizens that had crossed the bridge and were now in Auradon full time. Crime came with them, of course, but that was not surprising – it was all they’d ever known, so of course the habits would be tough to break. So she created the Warehouse.

It was actually multiple old warehouses, abandoned and in a corner of Auradon that wasn’t as densely populated, connected by bridges and tunnels and makeshift swings. While Mal may have started it, it grew on its own, with the help of the kids who began to discover it.

Mal’s enchantment meant only those with good and evil in them could find the door – kids who didn’t belong to one group or the other, kids with a little bit of good and bad.

Mal, Evie, Jay, and Carlos were regulars, especially for the sparring rings. There wasn’t much fighting in Auradon, maybe the occasional karate class or disagreement gone south, but it was frowned upon. The four VKs used to spar every day on the Isle to keep their skills sharp, because more often than not they were fighting for their lives. It didn’t make sense to let themselves get rusty, so they would practice whenever they could in empty classrooms or the castle basement, but the Warehouse was equipped just for that. It had everything from swords to slingshots, and practice fights were a great way to relieve stress and anxiety, often coming from the culture shock they were exposed to when arriving.

The Warehouse had other things, too. A bar, spray paint, a big cauldron, magical items brought from the Isle. If you were from the Isle, this was all the good things about home.

And it helped. Fewer outbursts from kids who were having a hard time adjusting, less graffiti, less pickpocketing. This was a place where old habits didn’t have to die hard, a place for VKs to get their fix without doing any real damage. Even some Auradon kids had found their way in, but the Warehouse didn’t care where you were from, just that you had a little mischief in your blood, so nobody complained.

Within months, paint covered the walls, and a soundproof charm had been implemented to keep the locals from hearing the fights and the music. Within a year, it had a fully stocked bar, complete with any potions and poisons a creature could crave.

A year and a half after the barrier comes down, Mal and Evie are on their way home from a council meeting, and stop by the Library for some research. Evie is being trained as the future queen, and Mal has been honing her magic spells to become more powerful and precise. Fairy Godmother had decided to make it open 24 hours a day (because after all, the doors of wisdom are never shut), and they had taken to meeting up there with Jay and Carlos for any midnight adventures.

Tonight is just a pit stop. Evie goes off looking for some history books while Mal peruses the shelves on the way to the magic section. She rounds a corner and sees a figure in pink punch the wall in frustration. Mal hears the bones in her hand fracture – after all, she’d broken her hands regularly in a similar fashion – and the smothered yell. Why is Audrey in the magic section?

Mal walks over without thinking, and Audrey looks up at her like a deer in the headlights. “Mal! I wasn’t--”

Mal just grabs her wrist. Her non-verbal spells had gotten better, and Audrey winces as the skin on her knuckles knits back together.

“That was a solid punch. You could do some real damage if you attacked anything other than a wall in the library,”

Audrey’s frustration disappears, probably to somewhere deep inside, and she sighs. “I haven’t been sleeping. I usually come here if I can’t sit still,” she starts to get up. “Thanks for the fix. I’ll get out of your hair,”

“Wait.” Mal looks her up and down. “What do you mean you haven’t been sleeping?” Audrey looks down at the books she’s holding, and Mal sees they’re about her mother. “A side effect from the scepter?”

Audrey nods. “I haven’t found anything yet, and these are the last books in the library to try. You don’t know anything about...” She trails off as Mal shakes her head. “Ok, that’s fine. I’ll see you at the next council meeting,”

She brushes past but Mal catches her wrist, still studying her, deciding. “Meet me here the day after tomorrow, at 8pm. I think I might be able to help,”

She lets go and strides past Audrey. “Ice your hand, I’m not a healer,”

Mal turns the corner and hears Audrey stand still for a few moments before hurrying to the front desk. She suspects, but she’s not sure. It’s up to the Warehouse.

Mal is 86% sure Audrey will show up.

As the Library turns on its lights for the night visitors, Mal makes herself comfy against one of the big marble columns and waited, slouching to look relaxed but on the lookout.

Audrey arrives first. She looks wary, but begins to relax when Mal stays nonchalant. Evie and Carlos arrive next, and Jay is only a minute later. He is the only one to comment on Audrey’s presence.

“Audrey! Didn’t expect see you rolling with us VKs. Mal invite you?”

Audrey nods. “Can’t say I expected it either. Where are we going?”

Nobody answers her, but she sees the smiles and raised eyebrow looks they give each other. This doesn’t help her nerves.

They all pile in Mal’s car, with Evie sitting shotgun and Audrey with the boys in the backseat. The ride takes them straight through the woods, and Mal’s magic keeps them from crashing into the trees.

The ride is about 20 minutes, and while Evie and Mal bicker over the music, Carlos makes small talk with Audrey. They don’t say much, but the talking is a nice distraction from a potentially awkward ride. Upon arrival, Audrey sees... nothing. Some old warehouses, a small river, no lights except stars. It’s a nice night, but the setting is terribly ordinary. Everyone gets out, and suddenly they change. The VKs’ shoulders relax, Mal grabs Jay’s hand and loops her other arm through Evie’s. Carlos leans against Jay with a soft smile, one Audrey’s never quite seen before. In fact, she’s never seen any of them this relaxed.

Mal glances back at her. “You lead the way,” Audrey starts to protest, but Mal stops her. “Just walk. You’ll either know where to go, or you won’t.”

Audrey takes a few steps forward, toward the buildings. Reality seems to ripple here, and there’s a smell in the air that’s familiar and indescribable.

Mal laughs when she sees Audrey inhale. “You recognize it, right?”

It reminds her of Ben’s coronation, of the Museum’s chamber for the Queen’s crown, of pink dust and stone statues and birthday cake. “Magic,”

“Yup,” is all Mal says, but she’s got an incorrigible grin on her face. Evie wiggles with excitement. Jay’s grin is like Mal’s, with a dash of encouragement, and it’s all Audrey needs to lead the way.

The closer she gets, the stronger the smell. Audrey starts to hear laughter and crashes from the buildings, which are starting to glow brighter with each step. She feels her nerves disappear as she reaches to pull back a piece of fabric draped over a big hole in the fencing, and when she steps through she can suddenly breathe.

The colors are everywhere, in every shade. Everyone is decked out in bright clothes, and the graffiti that decorates the walls seem to glow and change in the corner of your eye. The largest tag is on a sign that once said “NO ILLEGAL ACTIVITY,” but had been revised to say “NO <strike>IL</strike>LEGAL ACTIVITY,” and decorated with shimmering green flames. Audrey looks at Mal, and she just shrugs.

The music is otherworldly. Audrey can’t pay attention to it without wanting desperately to dance – her head starts to nod to the beat without her consent. Evie takes Jay and Carlos onto the dance floor, and they laugh with delight the music calls for a spin. Mal takes Audrey to the other side of the room before she can join them.

The music is loud, but Audrey can hear Mal just fine. “Welcome to the Warehouse.” She sits at a table for two and Audrey joins her. “This place is for anyone in between good and evil. Isle kids that are learning to be good? They can’t go cold turkey, so this is where they can be themselves,”

Audrey looks around, but not everyone is from the Isle. “There are Auradon kids here, too.”

She spots a few people she knows from university. Peter Pan’s daughter, Stella, and a few other kids she recognizes are milling around, dancing and drinking and playing with the Isle kids. Two shots are delivered to the tables by impossibly fast fairies.

“Liquid courage,” Mal says. “It’s one of the most popular potions. Try it,” she downs the shot, even though Audrey is pretty sure that Mal has more courage than anyone else in the world.

It’s fiery as it goes down, but it doesn’t burn like whiskey – it burns like anger and adrenaline, but without the pain that usually accompanies them. Her hands make fists; Audrey wants to hit something, some_one_, and Mal drags her to a tunnel that echoes with sounds of cheering and clashing metal.

Two people are on the platforms, sword fighting. Audrey can’t look away. Both fighters are bloody and grinning, enjoying every moment.

Mal yells over the crowd. “Uma and Harry are up there at least twice a night,”

Audrey looks again, and sure enough, she recognizes the two pirates. Uma finally disarms Harry and slices him across the cheek, and then helps him to his feet. A fairy brings him a bottle of bubbly green liquid, and as he takes a sip his wounds start to clot and heal. He offers Uma some, and she takes a swig before heading toward Mal and Audrey.

“What do you think?” Mal directs the quest at Audrey, but doesn’t take her eyes off of Uma. “You wanna give it a go?”

“Yes,” The word comes out before she can think twice about it.

Uma grins. “Don’t worry, we can start you with no weapons.”

Audrey lets herself be dragged to the platform, and she expects awkwardness but everyone cheers. Uma looks for an opponent and picks out a girl with purple skin and pointed ears. They shake hands, and Audrey’s opponent smiles.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. It’s only sparring, and just tap out when you’re done, you’ll do great,”

Audrey nods and takes a deep breath. A sword hits a bell and the girl throws a hook punch that is a bit too fast to dodge. Audrey hits back with a jab and it’s the best feeling in the world. She lets herself start to rely on instinct, hitting harder and twisting whatever way her body wants her to. It’s clear she’s untrained – the other girl gets plenty of hits in – but she doesn’t care, and neither does the crowd. When she’s too tired to throw another punch, the match is called, and she stumbles off the platform and into a chair with Mal’s help.

Audrey giggles at the thought of her mother finding out she’d been in a fight, and Mal grins. “So, did it help?”

Audrey can only nod.

The healing potion is a simple brew, and Audrey only has some healing cuts left when she finishes it. Jay is so excited to hear about it, and punches Mal in the shoulder for letting him miss it.

Carlos laughs at them as they begin to play around, laughing and avoiding until Jay catches Mal and hauls her over his shoulder. “You should see them spar, it’s super intense. They used to do it in the dorms when we first got here, but eventually it cost too much to keep replacing the lamps,”

Audrey smiles, a real smile that hasn’t been seen in months until tonight. Evie is ordering something at the bar, and Jay puts Mal down, only for Uma to come up behind her and grab her while she’s dusting off. Mal leans into the hug and closes her eyes, laughing lightly.

Uma nods to Audrey. “You did good up there. Can’t wait to see next time.”

Audrey considers this. Is she allowed back? Does she want to come back? She decides the answer is yes to both questions.

Evie comes back with a glass bottle filled with a deep purple potion. “You guys ready? I’m beat,”

Mal nods, and so do Jay and Carlos.

“I’ll drive, since I haven’t been hitting the liquid courage tonight,” Jay looks pointedly at Mal.

“I was just giving Audrey the full experience! You know I’m more of an adrenaline shot girl myself,” She hands him the keys, and they tread back to the hole in the fence. Everything instantly mutes, and the night is quiet under the stars.

This time it’s Audrey who rides shotgun, with Mal, Evie, and Carlos laughing in the back.

Jay looks over at her. “So?” He swerves, trying to hit the trees instead of avoid them. “What did you think?”

Audrey gives him a full grin. “It’s everything I needed,” She looks out the window. “Thank you,”

“The Warehouse knows who belongs and who doesn’t. You’re one of us now,”

They part ways back at the Library.

Evie hands the potion she bought to Audrey. “It’s a sleeping draught. One of the best, but I can always tweak it if it doesn’t work.”

Audrey swirls it around and catches a glimpse of some stars in the dark purple. “Thank you,” The words seem small, but Evie nods like she gets it. She probably does.

As the others go home, she sits on the steps and watches the stars. For the first time in a year and a half, she’s not alone. And she never has to be again.


End file.
